4 Ways to Prevent International Parcel Delivery Fraud
Every day, there’s some form of delivery fraud happening. International parcel delivery makes those opportunities for fraud even greater. In fact, e-commerce and shipping fraud has been steadily on the rise.
They say that offense is the best defense, so in order to avoid becoming a ‘mark’ or easy target for scams, you should arm yourself with knowledge. We want to give you a head-start with these four methods of gauging fraudulent clients.
1. Search Research
The first thing anyone should do when dealing with a new client or company is searching for them on Google. Big companies will have plenty of information to dig through, Small businesses and entrepreneurs will be especially important, too.
If someone is doing business under one name, your Google search can save you a ton of time and money from finding out they’re untrustworthy the hard way. Many disgruntled customers will take to social media to air their grievances or praise for a company. Most businesses know the importance of having a good reputation and will work hard to maintain it.
Don’t be afraid to dig deep.
2. Focus on Customer Reviews
You can basically skip all the company PR, promises, and figures, to some extent. Actions speak louder than words, but customer words speak louder than all. Using proper judgment and reading comments carefully, you can learn a lot about how a company does business.
Now, sometimes it is true that larger businesses do get a disproportionate amount of bad reviews. For a shipping company that handles international parcel delivery, you may see mostly bad reviews because customers that receive everything with no issues are less likely to review.
3. Refer to the BBB
You will always want to check the Better Business Bureau when it comes to international parcel delivery. This is nice for further confirmation about the overall satisfaction of a business. Customer reviews should always come first, the BBB rating alone is not a good metric to go by these days.
Most small businesses don’t even have a rating.
4. Never Value Rates Over Ratings
Okay, what is meant by this is that you should never prioritize pricing over the overall feedback. If the cheapest freight rates come with some potential red flags in the form of negative reviews, then don’t take the cheap route. Don’t neglect the value of good customer service or business experience.
If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is–in the case of parcel fraud, cheap shipping often means the company can’t sell themselves on service alone.
Don’t Fear International Parcel Delivery
In the global e-commerce and trade world, it can often seem like the Wild Wild West. With stories like the Utah pharmacy smuggling scandal, black markets, and trafficking, being paranoid is a healthy reaction. But, as this guide has shown, it all comes down to reading between the lines.
Entrepreneurs and business owners know how much money can be saved by taking matters in one’s own hands and not outsourcing decisions like these. You can check out more DIY-style informative guides like this one right here.
Knowledge is power and success is the result of applying said knowledge.